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An Assessment Method and Toolkit to Evaluate Keyboard Design on Smartphones

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Cortical surface variation in individuals with excessive smartphone use.

Dusan Hirjak¹, Gudrun M Henemann², Mike M Schmitgen²

¹Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany.

Developmental Neurobiology

|March 25, 2022

Summary

Excessive smartphone use, or smartphone addiction (SPA), is linked to altered brain structure. Individuals with SPA showed reduced cortical folding complexity in brain regions crucial for cognitive and emotional regulation.

Keywords:

addiction anterior cingulate cortex smartphone surface-based morphometry

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Area of Science:

Neuroscience
Neuroimaging
Mental Health Research

Background:

Excessive smartphone use is linked to adverse mental health outcomes in young adults.
Understanding the neurobiological underpinnings of smartphone addiction (SPA) is a research priority.
Cortical morphology associated with SPA remains poorly understood.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate cortical morphology differences in individuals with and without SPA.
To examine cortical folding complexity (CCF) and cortical thickness (CTh) in relation to SPA.
To explore the association between CCF and SPA severity.

Main Methods:

Structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) at 3 T was used.
19 individuals with SPA and 22 without (n-SPA) were compared.
Smartphone Addiction Inventory (SPAI) assessed SPA; Computational Anatomy Toolbox (CAT12) analyzed CCF and CTh.

Main Results:

SPA individuals exhibited lower CCF in the right superior frontal gyrus, right caudal anterior cingulate cortex (cACC), and right rostral anterior cingulate cortex (rACC).
Across all participants, right cACC CCF correlated with SPAI total score, time spent, compulsivity, and sleep interference.
Findings suggest SPA is associated with aberrant structural maturation in key regulatory brain regions.

Conclusions:

Smartphone addiction is associated with distinct alterations in cortical morphology.
Reduced CCF in specific frontal regions may underlie cognitive and emotional dysregulation in SPA.
Further research into the neurodevelopmental aspects of SPA is warranted.